Combined lamp holder and reflector



March 12, 1945 J. KENMNG 2,193,485

COMBINED LAMP HOLDER AND REFLECTOR Filed oct. 10, 1938 l7 0 32 Fig. L 35INVENTOR. Joseph J. Kenning ATTORNEY.

Patented Mar. 12, 1940.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE:

My invention relates to combined lamp holders and reflectors of thatgeneral type of incandescent lamps employing up to fifteen hundred wattsand used for portrait photography, commercial photography, homeportraiture, copying, andfor any other purpose a lamp of this type maybe. necessary or desired.

One of he objects of my invention is the shaping of the lamp housing tofunction as a reflector, thereby doing away with the necessity ofproviding an additional element to serve as a re? fiector.

Another object which I have in view is to position the lamp socket inthe bottom of the lamp casing with louvres so positioned that there willof the light into the lens of the camera.

Another object is the provision of a frame for the support in tautcondition of a sheet of diffusion material, the frame being formed forthe easy replacement of such material which has been injured in use.

Another of my objects is the provision of a resilient device forsupporting a diffusion screen frame under tension, the supporting devicebeing of simple construction and application and being entirely out ofthe way when not in use.

Still another of my objects is the provision of means for supporting thelamp housing either from the ceiling or on a tripod and arranged foradjustment to-reflect the light in any desired direction.

Having in view these objects and others which will be pointed out in thefollowing description, I will now refer tov the drawing in which Figure1 is a view in isometric projection of the lamp holder and reflector,portions being torn or broken away to disclose otherwise concealedelements.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view in reduced scale of the lampholder and reflector.

lamp'housing. I Underneath the bottom wall II of air past the socket 13.The louvre l6 surrounds the lower portion of the lamp' i l, but abovethe lamp a' ventilating opening I? permits This construction insuresthat the lamp socket is air-cooled.

For closing the front opening of, the lamp housing, I provide two hingeddoors l8 and I9 which are secured to the. wall l2 by means of hinges253'." Each of these doors is narrower than the front opening of thelamp housing but they the escape of the heated air in the lamp chamber.

are hinged so as toclose the opening by the overlapping of one of thedoors on thefother. The bottom I I is provided with a stop member 22which limits the closing movement of the doors is and i9. These doorsmaybe closed during the transportation of the lamp casing in order toprotect the lamp against injury. They may be opened into'the positionshown in Figure 3 in which position they will cut ofi stray beams oflight to give the photographer control over the lighting arrangement.The doors as well as the lamp casing are made from any suitable materialsuch as polished aluminum or bright tin.

' Diffused light is now employed in nearly all types of photography andespecially in portrait photography. This is accomplished by the use ofdiffusing screens made of tracing cloth, buckram, or the like. Thesescreens are mounted on frames but the diffusion material has arelatively short life. under the heat action of the lamp. The effect ofthe heat is to cause buckling and 'charring of the diffusing material,resulting in uneven and inadequate illumination of the subject. As aresult, frequent replacements become necessary but the priorarrangementsare not only costly but diflicult to operate. Ihave,therefore devised a frame to which the diffusing material maybe'expeditiously applied in tensioned condition and also a frame supportonth-e lamp casing whereby the frame with the dififusing material may beapplied and latched in its most effective position relative to the lamp,the application of the frame involving only a single man: ual movementon 'the'partof the photographer to hold the frame in place undertension.

The frame includes a pair of side rails v 23, a top rail 24, and abottom rail 25 arranged in rectangular relation. The sheet 26 of thediffusing'material may be lapped over these rails and secured theretounder tension by means of paper fasteners 21, or by any other suitablemeans. The top and bottom rails are extended at the ends beyond the siderails 23, and connecting their free ends are rails 28. Each pair ofrails 23 and 28 is connected together by a bar 29 providing an opening36 at the outer side of the frame and between the bar 219 and the rail24. The frame may be formed from wire or a rod by bending and weldingthe rails 23, 2 3 and and the bar 29. The open space 39 is adapted forthe reception of a door it, the length of the ppening space beingslightly more than the height of the door. Secured to the rail 24 is aninverted U-shaped bracket 3|, the ends of which are secured to the toprail 2 1. The bracket BI is shorter than the rail 24 as shown inFigure 1. Two latches 32 are pivotally secured at 33 to the inner sideof the lamp casing. These latches are in the form shown in Figure l andthey terminate in hooks at their free extremities. In their'irioperativeposition they hang suspended as shown at the left in Figure l, but intheir operative position they project outwardly and upwardly from theopen side of the lamp casing. In the path of movement of the latchesthere are pins 34, one for each of the latches 32. The latches 32 aremade of resilient material so that they may be easily snapped over thepins 34 in the movement to either operative or inoperative position. The

hooks on the latches 32 engage the bracket 31 at the corners.

To apply the frame with the diffusion material to the lamp housing it isonly necessary to position the frame with the doors l8 and i9 projectingthrough the opening spaces and then to raise the frame and to spring thelatches 32 into place. The frame is held in tensioned relation by theengagement of the bar 29 With the lower edges of the doors l8 and H! bythe tension exerted by the resilient latch 32 to hold the frame inplace. The tension in the latches 32 may be adjusted by simply bendingthe latches at their bends so as to either increase or decrease thetension on the frame. The application of the frame with the diffusionmaterial is a very simple operation requiring the minimum of time andeffort. When it becomes necessary to replace the diffusion material thisalso can be done in a very short time and with almost no effort. Owingto the low cost of the frames, however, it is advisable to keep a numberof frames on hand and supplied with diffusing screens so that no timeneed be lost at busy periods.

The lamp with its lamp casing may be supported on a tripod or suspendedfrom the ceiling, in either case being adjustable to throw the light inany desired direction. For suspending the casing from the ceiling, theremay be provided a number of hooks 35 or other suitable devices for theapplication of chains which may be individually adjusted in length togive the casing any desired tilt. For use with a tripod one or moresocket members 36 are provided with inclined sockets for connection toany standards tripod 31, the sockets being inclined for the purpose ofsupporting the lamp casing and reflector in inclined position. Setscrews 38 enter the socket members 36 for making the connection rigid.The lamp holder may be vertically adjusted through the adjustment of thetripod but the adjustment in inclination of the lamp holder may beobtained by the use of two or more socket members having sockets ofdifferent inclinations. In the usual gallery practice, however, only twoinclined positions are employed.

From the foregoing description as, read on my drawing it will be seenthat I have provided a lamp holder and reflector which is superior in anumber of respects to the prior lamp holders and reflectors andespecially to those at present in commercial use. The shaping of therear of the lamp housing to serve as a reflector eliminates thenecessity of a special reflector, thus reducing the cost of constructionand the weight. Since the socket is air cooled, the longevity of thelighting element is increased. Most of the prior lamp holders have thesocket above the lamp where it is subjected to the heat from the lampand the hot air currents flowing through the casing. The arrangement ofthe lamp socket in the bottom of the casing eliminates the objection totopheaviness usually present in most lamps of this type and it alsogives the device a streamlined appearance; The apparatus is very lightin weight, compact, portable, and simple in construction. The doors ofthe lamp housing, which may be made of material similar to that of thehousing, shade the strong light cast on the diffusing material from thephotographers eyes. The arrangement also prevents backlashing of thelight into the lens of the camera. The means described for holding thediffusion screen frame are superior to any heretofore devised in thatthey facilitate the easy replacement of diffusing material on the frameand especially because of the ease with which the frames may bepositioned with the expenditure of the least effort and time.

I have herein shown and described what I have found in practice to be athoroughly practical and workable embodiment of the invention hereinpresented, but it is self-evident that variations and modifications inre'spect'to detail features such as ventilation opening and the additionof a dished parabolic reflector in some models may be made withoutdeparting from the principles involved or sacrificing any of theadvantages secured. Hence I do not limit the invention to the particularconstruction shown and described but reserve all such modifications asfairly fall within the scope and purview of the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention in such full, clear, and exact termsthat its construction and operation will be readily understood by othersskilled in the art to which it pertains, what I claim as new and desireto secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

A lamp casing having an open forward side and having a parabolic rearreflecting wall, a lamp socket in the bottom of the wall of said casingand positioned between said rear wall and the open side of said casing,a pair of doors hingedly secured to said casing at the opposite sides ofthe opening of said casing, said doors when in their closing positionbeing in overlapping relation to each other and in divergent relationwhen in their open position, a frame supporting a sheet of diffusionmaterial in taut position thereon, said frame being provided with anelongatedopening at each side thereof for the reception of said doors,and resilient arms pivotally secured to said casing and having hooks atthe free extremities thereof for engaging said frame to maintain saidframe under tension on said doors.

JOSEPH J. KENNING.

